United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK, or as Britain) is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands. Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK with a land border, sharing it with the Republic of Ireland. Apart from this land border, the UK is surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean, the North Sea, the English Channel and the Irish Sea. The largest island, Great Britain, is linked to France by the Channel Tunnel. It came to being in 1707, with the union between the Kingdom of Scotland to the North, and the Kingdom of England to the south - the Kingdoms of Wales being annexed by the English three centuries earlier. The Kingdom of Ireland - which had been an English crown dependency since 1659, joined in 1801. As of 1927, the majority of Ireland left to form its own republic. The United Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy and unitary state consisting of four countries: England, Scotland,Wales and Northern Ireland. It is governed by a parlimentary system with its seat of government in London, the capital, but with three devolved national administrations in Belfast, Cardiff and Edinbrough, the capitals of Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland respectively. The channel island bailiwicks of Jersey and Guernsey, and the Isle of Man are Crown Dependencies and are often not considered part of the UK, though they are treated as part of it for many purposes including nationality. The UK has fourteen overseas territories, all remnants of the British Empire, which at its height in 1922 encompassed almost a quarter of the world's land surface, the largest empire in history. British influence can continue to be observed in the language, culture and legal systems of many of its former colonies. The UK is a developed country, with the world's sixth largest economy by nominal GDP and the seventh largest by purchasing power parity. It was the world's first industrialised country and the world's foremost power during the 19th and early 20th centuries, but the economic cost of two world wars and the decline of its empire in the latter half of the 20th century diminished its leading role in global affairs. The UK nevertheless remains a major power with strong economic, cultural, military, scientific and political influence. It is a recognised nuclear weapons state and has the third highest defence spending in the world. History The history of the United Kingdom as a unified sovereign state began with the political union of the kingdoms of England, which included Wales, and Scotland on 1 May 1707 in accordance with the Treaty of Union, signed on 22 July 1706,and ratified by both the Parliaments of England and Scotland each passing an Act of Union. The Union created the United Kingdom of Great Britain, which shared a single constitutional monarch and a single parliament at Westminster. Prior to this, the kingdoms of England and Scotland had been separate states, though in personal union following the Union of the Crowns in 1603, with political, administrative and cultural institutions including representative governance, law systems, and distinguished contributions to the arts and sciences, upon which the United Kingdom was to be built. On the new, united kingdom, historian Simon Schama said "What began as a hostile merger would end in a full partnership in the most powerful going concern in the world, it was one of the most astonishing transformations in European history." A further Act of Union in 1800 added the Kingdom of Ireland to create the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The early years of the United Kingdom were marked by Jacobite risings which ended with defeat at Culloden in 1746. Later, victory in the Seven Years' War, in 1763, led to the dominance of the British Empire which was the foremost global power for over a century and grew to become the largest empire in history. By 1921, the British Empire held sway over a population of about 458 million people, approximately one-quarter of the world's population. and as a result, the culture of the United Kingdom, and its industrial, political and linguistic legacy, is widespread. In 1922 and following the Anglo-Irish Treaty, Ireland seceded fom the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland to become the Irish Free State, a dominion of the British Empire but a day later, Northern Ireland seceded from the Free State and rejoined the United Kingdom. As a result, in 1927 the United Kingdom changed its formal title to the "United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland," usually shortened to the "United Kingdom", the "UK" or "Britain", but the Monarch remained "By the Grace of God, of Great Britain, Ireland and the British Dominions beyond the Seas King/Queen, Defender of the Faith" until 1953. Following World War II, in which the UK was an allied power, most of the territories of the British Empire became independent. Many went on to join the Commonwealth of Nations, a free association of independent states. Some have retained the British monarch as their head of state to become independent Commonwealth realms. In its capacity as a great power, and as a leading member of the United Nations, European Union and NATO, the United Kingdom remains a strong economic, cultural, military and political influence in the 21st century. The Commonwealth of Nations The Commonwealth of Nations, often referred to as the Commonwealth or the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-three independent member states. Most of them were formerly part of the British Empire. They co-operate within a framework of common values and goals as outlined in the Singapore Declaration. These include the promotion of democracy, human rights, good governance, the rule of law, individual liberty, egalitarianism, free trade, multilateralism and world peace. The Commonwealth is not a political union, but an intergovernmental organisation through which countries with diverse social, political and economic backgrounds are regarded as equal in status. Its activities are carried out through the permanent Commonwealth Secretariat, headed by the Secretary-General; biennial Meetings between Commonwealth Heads of Government; and the Commonwealth Foundation, which facilitates activities of non-governmental organisations in the so-called 'Commonwealth Family'. The symbol of this free association is the Head of the Commonwealth, which is a ceremonial position currently held by Queen Elizabeth II. Elizabeth II is also the monarch, separately, of sixteen members of the Commonwealth, informally known as the Commonwealth realms. As each realm is an independent kingdom, the Queen, as monarch, holds a distinct title for each, though, by a Meeting of Commonwealth Prime Ministers in 1952, all include the style Head of the Commonwealth at the end; for example: Elizabeth the Second, by the Grace of God, Queen of Australia and of Her other Realms and Territories, Head of the Commonwealth. Beyond the realms, the majority of the members of the Commonwealth have separate heads of state: thirty-two members are republics, and five members have distinct monarchs: the Sultan of Brunei; the King of Lesotho; the Yang di-Pertuan Agong (or King) of Malaysia; the King of Swaziland; and the King of Tonga. Countries of the United Kingdom England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom.It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental Europe. The mainland of England consists of the central and southern part of the island of Great Britain in the North Atlantic, but England also includes over 100 smaller islands such as the Isles of Scilly and the Isle of Wight. The Flag of England '''is the St George's Cross. The red cross appeared as an emblem of England during the middle ages and the Crusades and is one of the earliest known emblems representing England. It achieved status as the national flag of England during the sixteenth century. Saint George became the patron saint of England in the thirteenth century, and the legend of Saint George slaying a dragon dates from the twelfth century. The flag appeared during the Middle Ages. The first known recorded use of the St George's Cross as an emblem (but not as a flag) of England was in a roll of account relating to the Welsh War of 1275. The English royalist forces at the Battle of Evesham in 1265 used a red cross on their uniforms, to distinguish themselves from the white crosses used by the rebel barons at the Battle of Lewes a year earlier. Scotland '''Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom.Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the southwest. In addition to the mainland, Scotland consists of over 790 islands including the Northern Isles and the Hebrides. The Flag of Scotland is a white saltire, a crux decussate (X-shaped cross) representing the cross of the Christian martyr Saint Andrew, the Patron Saint of Scotland, on a blue field. It is named the Saltire or the St Andrew's Cross. In heraldic language, it may be blazoned Azure, a saltire argent. According to legend, in 832 A.D. King Óengus (II) (or King Angus) led the Picts and Scots in battle against the Angles under a king named Athelstan near modern-day Athelstaneford in East Lothian. King Angus and his men were surrounded and he prayed for deliverance. During the night Saint Andrew, who was martyred on a saltire cross, appeared to Angus and assured him of victory. On the following morning a white saltire against the background of a blue sky appeared to both sides. The Picts and Scots were heartened by this, but the Angles lost confidence and were defeated. This saltire design has been the Scottish flag ever since. Wales Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom, bordered by England to its east, and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It is also an elective region of the European Union. Wales has a population estimated at three million and is officially bilingual, with both Welsh and English having equal status; the majority use English as their first language. The Flag of Wales is Y Ddraig Goch (English: The Red Dragon), consisting of a red dragon passant on a green and white field. As with many heraldic charges, theexact representation of the dragon is not standardised and many renderings exist. The flag incorporates the red dragon of Cadwaladr, King of Gwynedd, along with the Tudor colours of green and white. It was used by Henry VII at the battle of Bosworth in 1485 after which it was carried in state to St. Paul's Cathedral. The red dragon was then included in the Tudor royal arms to signify their Welsh descent. It was officially recognised as the Welsh national flag in 1959. Northern Ireland Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west. At the time of the 2001 UK Census, its population was 1,685,000, constituting about 30% of the island's total population and about 3% of the population of the United Kingdom. It is also an elective region of the European Union. 'Northern Ireland '''has not had its own unique, government sanctioned flag since its government was prorogued in 1972, and abolished in 1973 under the NorthernIreland Constitution Act 1973. During official events, the British government uses the Union Flag which is the official flag of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and is the only flag used by the government in Northern Ireland. The Ulster Banner remains in use by Unionists, a number of sporting organisations in Northern Ireland and some local government authorities under Unionist control. In-game A British campaign currently appears in the following ''Call of Duty installments: *''Call of Duty'' *''Call of Duty: United Offensive'' *''Call of Duty: Finest Hour'' *''Call of Duty 2'' *''Call of Duty 3'' *''Call of Duty: Roads to Victory'' *''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' *''Call of Duty: World at War: Final Fronts'''' '' *''Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2'' Call of Duty: World at War Although initially it was thought there was no British campaign in Call of Duty: World at War, the discovery of code within the game showing British weapons hinted one had been planned but dropped last minute. Notably the icon for the weapon selection menu and HUD icon portraying the Bren gun are still in the game's files. Evidence of the Sten gun and Lee-Enfield rife has also been found. There is however a British campaign in ''Call of Duty: World at War: Final Fronts'' and Call of Duty: World at War DS. Britain In-game Britain appears twice in the ''Call of Duty Series'', Once in a ''Call of Duty 3'' cutscene when Doyle, Keith and Ingram prepare for their insertion into France and again in ''Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare'' at the SAS headquarters in Hereford, England in the level F.N.G. It is mentioned in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 in newspaper clippings from the briefing screen, Vladimir Makarov is known to have bombed Picadilly circus in London. See Also *British Army *Royal Air Force *Royal Navy *British 6th Airborne Division *SAS *Allied Powers Category:Countries Category:Call of Duty 3 Category:Call of Duty 4 Category:Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2